Philosophical Ethics: The Advertiser: 8th April 2015
Dear Letters Editor,
Congratulations to Education Minister, Susan Close, for thinking beyond NAPLAN (“we need to be taught how to think for ourselves”, The Advertiser, 8/4/15).
When will education bureaucracies, both state and federal, finally realise there’s something out there called “Collaborative Philosophical Inquiry” (CPI), or simply Philosophical Ethics. It teaches kids the basics of logic, reasoning and critical thinking and helps develop essential skills for adult life — work and personal.
Schools in NSW have a basic program called Primary Ethics but it’s used only as a ‘substitute’ for kids who are opted-out of religious classes — something of a paradox. But it’s run by volunteers and reaches only 25% of NSW children.
What’s needed in all schools is the full CPI program, run by qualified teachers, and on a weekly basis. Academic studies of CPI clearly demonstrate the enormous benefits to schools, to children, and to their contented parents.
Plain Reason: Promoting science, reason, logic and critical thinking